ABC reporter said ‘gunman’ tried to assassinate Trump, not ‘government’

What is the claim?

On July 13, former U.S. President Donald Trump survived an assassination attempt at a rally in Pennsylvania. Shortly after the incident, a video circulated on social media alleging that ABC News host Pierre Thomas claimed the U.S. government tried to kill Trump.

The video was shared with the caption, “BREAKING: ABC host claims the United States government tried to kill President Trump!” and has been widely circulated. Archived versions of these posts can be found here and here.

Screenshots of the social media posts. (Source: X/Modified by Logically Facts)

However, this claim is false. Pierre Thomas did not state that the U.S. government attempted to kill Trump; he referred to the "gunman" as the assailant. The misrepresentation of Thomas's statement has led to the spread of false information.

How did we find the truth?

A reverse image search of the viral clip's keyframes led us to the original video, published on the Good Morning America YouTube channel (archived here) on July 24, 2024, titled “New Video of Trump Assassination Attempt.”

Upon reviewing the video, we noted that between the 0:15 and 0:22 mark, Thomas said, “Our audience is about to see the frantic seconds in the moments after the gunman tried to kill former President Trump.” The footage includes helmet camera views of law enforcement reaching the roof after the shooter was neutralized by a sniper. At no point does Thomas suggest that the government was involved in the attack.

Subtitles in the YouTube video also confirm that Thomas said “the gunman tried to kill former President Trump,” not “the government,” as claimed in the viral posts. Slowing down the video further confirmed that Thomas clearly used the term “gunman.”

Trump assassination attempt 

On July 13, a 20-year-old gunman named Thomas Matthew Crooks attempted to assassinate Trump at a rally in Pennsylvania. Crooks, who had climbed to the roof of a nearby building, fired at Trump, wounding him in the ear. The gunman was subsequently killed by a sniper. Additionally, a former fire chief attending the rally with his family was killed, and two other individuals were critically injured.

The verdict

The video of ABC News reporter Pierre Thomas discussing the Trump assassination attempt has been misrepresented. Thomas referred to the "gunman," not the "government," as the assailant. The claim that Thomas accused the government of attempting to kill Trump is false.